Bible League: Living His Word Don’t be drunk with wine, which will ruin your life, but be filled with the Spirit.— Ephesians 5:18 ERV The story behind the saying, “Saved by the bell,” is believed to have originated centuries ago. There were no morgues to freeze bodies, and doctors had not made many discoveries related to extreme intake of wine, which could make a person pass out for several days. A person who had drunk excessively might sleep in the street for more than two or three days, and when a passer-by would try to wake them up, he’d seem dead. Then, it’d be reported to the family and the individual would be buried. Months later, it was discovered that the person was not dead when buried, as the coffin had marks of struggling and the corpse had wide jaws of screaming. That is when the community realized that these individuals were not dead. After this discovery, a string or rope was tied to one of their hands, protruding outside the grave with a bell. A security person was designated to guard the grave for a few days. If the person were to wake up, he could ring the bell as he struggled for help, and the guard would scream for help to dig the survivor out. Then they could say, “You were saved by the bell!” The verse of the day is part of a long chain of commands from Ephesians 5 verses 15-20 to a community of believers in Christ. A command is a directive that must be applied or obeyed without any question since Jesus is the Lord of a believer’s life. The believer should be consumed and completely overflowing with the Holy Spirit instead of wine! “Filled” is an adjective—describing that the believer should be filled with the Holy Spirit. To be occupied always (since no one can drink the Holy Spirit), the believer becomes the container. He is filled with Christ, and fills others who follow Him! The body of believers can address one another in psalms, sing spiritual songs, make melody to the Lord with their heart, give thanks, and submit to one another (vs. 19-21). These are the result of being filled with the Holy Spirit. Excessive wine can lead to a lifestyle of sin that leads to dire consequences. Debauchery is to indulge excessively or be addicted. Thus Romans 6:21 says “You did evil things, and now you are ashamed of what you did. Did those things help you? No, they only brought death.” Ruining the precious life which Jesus paid a hefty price for starts small. A small sin will keep growing because it is unconfessed, entertained daily, and normalized. The end result of it is death. Indulging excessively delays a believer’s readiness for the return of Christ, thus risking missing the seconding coming of Master Jesus (Luke 12:45-46). Beloved, let us ask the Holy Spirit to help us to be subjected to the authority of God’s Word. Jesus said in John 15:3, “You have already been prepared to produce more fruit by the teaching I have given you.” The Word of God cleanses and aligns us to be able to walk in the righteousness and holiness of Christ when applied, and it becomes our way of living! Be blessed as you take care of the temple of the Holy Spirit! By Christopher Thetswe, Bible League International staff, South Africa Bible in a Year Old Testament ReadingNumbers 8, 9, 10 Numbers 8 -- The Seven Lamps; Levites Set Apart; Retirement at Fifty NIV NLT ESV NAS GWT KJV ASV ERV DRB Numbers 9 -- The Passover and Cloud above the Tabernacle NIV NLT ESV NAS GWT KJV ASV ERV DRB Numbers 10 -- The Silver Trumpets; Israelites Leave Sinai NIV NLT ESV NAS GWT KJV ASV ERV DRB New Testament Reading Mark 5:1-20 Mark 5 -- Jesus Sends the Demons into the Pigs, Heals the Woman with Bleeding, Raises Jairus' Daughter NIV NLT ESV NAS GWT KJV ASV ERV DRB Reading Plan Courtesy of Christian Classics Etherial Library. Tyndale Life Application Daily Devotion As the deer longs for streams of water,so I long for you, O God. I thirst for God, the living God. When can I go and stand before him? Insight As the life of a deer depends upon water, so our lives depend upon God. Those who seek him and long to understand him find never-ending life. Challenge Feeling separated from God, this psalmist wouldn't rest until he restored his relationship with God because he knew that his very life depended on it. Morning and Evening by Spurgeon Hebrews 13:5 I will never leave thee.No promise is of private interpretation. Whatever God has said to any one saint, he has said to all. When he opens a well for one, it is that all may drink. When he openeth a granary-door to give out food, there may be some one starving man who is the occasion of its being opened, but all hungry saints may come and feed too. Whether he gave the word to Abraham or to Moses, matters not, O believer; he has given it to thee as one of the covenanted seed. There is not a high blessing too lofty for thee, nor a wide mercy too extensive for thee. Lift up now thine eyes to the north and to the south, to the east and to the west, for all this is thine. Climb to Pisgah's top, and view the utmost limit of the divine promise, for the land is all thine own. There is not a brook of living water of which thou mayst not drink. If the land floweth with milk and honey, eat the honey and drink the milk, for both are thine. Be thou bold to believe, for he hath said, "I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee."In this promise, God gives to his people everything. "I will never leave thee." Then no attribute of God can cease to be engaged for us. Is he mighty? He will show himself strong on the behalf of them that trust him. Is he love? Then with lovingkindness will he have mercy upon us. Whatever attributes may compose the character of Deity, every one of them to its fullest extent shall be engaged on our side. To put everything in one, there is nothing you can want, there is nothing you can ask for, there is nothing you can need in time or in eternity, there is nothing living, nothing dying, there is nothing in this world, nothing in the next world, there is nothing now, nothing at the resurrection-morning, nothing in heaven which is not contained in this text--"I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee." Daily Light on the Daily Path Hebrews 12:24 and to Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood, which speaks better than the blood of Abel.John 1:29 The next day he saw Jesus coming to him and said, "Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world! Revelation 13:8 All who dwell on the earth will worship him, everyone whose name has not been written from the foundation of the world in the book of life of the Lamb who has been slain. Hebrews 10:4,5,10 For it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins. • Therefore, when He comes into the world, He says, "SACRIFICE AND OFFERING YOU HAVE NOT DESIRED, BUT A BODY YOU HAVE PREPARED FOR ME; • By this will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all. Genesis 4:4 Abel, on his part also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of their fat portions. And the LORD had regard for Abel and for his offering; Ephesians 5:2 and walk in love, just as Christ also loved you and gave Himself up for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God as a fragrant aroma. Hebrews 10:22 let us draw near with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. Hebrews 10:19 Therefore, brethren, since we have confidence to enter the holy place by the blood of Jesus, New American Standard Bible Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation, La Habra, Calif. All rights reserved. For Permission to Quote Information visit http://www.lockman.org. |
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